Astri Lindberg is an acknowledged child psychologist in Norway. She is also the partner of my wife’s father. Recently they came to stay for a few weeks to help us out after the birth of our second child. I took the opportunity to sit down and have an informal chat with her about some issues […]

So you decide to have a child.. and the love bubble that you and partner are in gets you through those early days – the pregnancy and the first few months – but what then? The endless sleepless nights (in our case), the tiredness, the no time for self etc etc etc.. Well i’m not […]

After disagreeing to do something she was politely asked to do, with gentle nodding and smiling we reminded our daughter that “Mamma knows best”, “No” she replied with as stern a look as a three-and-a-half year old can muster, “I know best … I’m three, and I know everything!”, “Oh okay, what’s the capital of […]

I’ve been asked several times for a follow up on my wildly popular Getting the Snip blog, here goes. Sitting around a campfire last year with a varied group of men, most fathers of one or more children, it seemed we had a mad rush on to get the snip, 5 of us put up […]

I face a dilemma. What to sacrifice for the best of our family? My wife and I have settled in an area we love and have spent the last 8 years here; the last 3 and a half as a family. We saw it as a great place to bring up our children, a small, […]

thought i might have a crack at writing a heartfelt poem about my child.. through the baby years to now as she is almost four.. Being Dad six years past was a different time the endless summer Beer, beach and bravado on my mind and i laughed and i laughed… the time sat waiting inviting […]

I think the term demonic possession might be a bit harsh but recently something has got into my beautiful gentle three-and -a -half -year -old son. Gone is the quiet sweet cherub of just a few weeks ago and in his place is the growling, sword wielding, hitting, swearing, entity that has replaced him. After […]

God I hate Christmas. Ever since last Christmas I’ve been questioning why we do Christmas at all anymore? I’m not Christian, don’t celebrate any of the religious aspects of the holiday, hate all the excessive presents and usually end up doing 3 or 4 weird-and-painful-Xmas-do’s each year. Why am I talking about Christmas in May? […]

We’ve just had our second child (two weeks ago) and when we were in the hospital there was a thank-you note on a pin-board from another mother that read, “When you have your first child you spend all your time staring at them, when you have your second, you spend all your time trying to […]

With the second Sunday in May just rolling past I think it would be foolish not to dedicate my blog to the nations most time poor, over worked, under paid, often under valued resource…mothers. So a big thank you and lots of love goes out to all the mothers, stepmothers, grandmas, foster mums, and mothers […]